XV World Forestry Congress Starts 2nd May

The XV World Forestry Congress will be hosted by the Government of the Republic of Korea From 2 to 6 May 2022 and held at the COEX Convention and Exhibition Center in Seoul. The Congress will bring together global forest stakeholders to review and analyze key challenges facing the sector and ways to address these. Participation is usually diverse, with representation from all regions and sectors; including the public and private sector, NGOs, CSOs, scientific or professional bodies, and forestry societies, as well as those who simply care about forests and the environment.

The WFC 2021 will provide a unique opportunity for the global forestry community to consider the state and future of world forestry, particularly in the context of the recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic, while striving to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals. The Congress will focus on defining the role of forests in the global developmental agenda (2030 Agenda) and other major agreements (Global Forest Goals, Paris Agreement, post-2020 global biodiversity framework) and identify key measures that must be put in place as the forest sector adjusts to the new reality and aims to help ‘build back better’. Forests must be an integral part of discussions and decisions to be made on sustainable development, because this will determine the health, wellbeing and stability of the planet and the people.

XV World Forestry Congress sub-themes and topics

The six sub-themes of the XV World Forestry Congress set out below, address the most important current issues concerning forests and the products and services they provide. The sub-themes also enable the review of progress in implementing the outcomes of previous congresses, especially the Durban Declaration, and the advances being made towards a sustainable, resilient future. In particular, the sub-themes address:

the importance of containing and reversing forest and tree-cover loss in attaining multiple global goals;
forests’ role in addressing global environmental challenges, including climate change and biodiversity conservation;
the important contribution of forest products and services to national economies and strategies for enhanced financing in the sector;
the use of forest resources to improve livelihoods, health and well-being;
ways to improve forest monitoring, data collection and knowledge management; and
enhancing multistakeholder partnerships and cooperation for the improved management and utilization of forest resources.

How to Participate

The Congress will bring together diverse participants from around the globe, with representation from all regions and sectors including the public and private sector, NGOs, CSOs, scientific or professional bodies, and forestry societies, as well as those who simply care about forests and the environment.

All Congress participants must be registered. Registration allows participation in all Congress sessions including the subtheme dialogues and side and other networking events. Participants may also request an exhibition booth to display their products and publications.

There will be a number of interactive events to participate in: side events, presenting a technical paper at a Speakers’ Corner, engaging in networking events, and a variety of other formats.

The XV World Forestry Congress will support the full participation and contribution of youth, and the programme will ensure youth contributions that will stem from debates among peers as well as inter-generational discussions on the most pressing issues facing forests and forestry.

Financial Support for the XV World Forestry Congress Participants

The Secretariat of the XV World Forestry Congress will provide financial support to enable active participation by all regions, countries and stakeholders in the Congress.

To ensure equitable, inclusive participation by a global community, recipients will be selected with priority given to those from low- and middle-income countries (as defined by the World Bank) who would not otherwise be able to attend the Congress. The selection process will also aim to achieve geographic balance across countries and regions, giving due consideration to women and youth.

The financial support may include the registration fee, airfare, accommodation, and subsistence depending on individual choices you can make in the Application Form. If you are selected to receive financial support, however, you are required to participate in the full five days of the Congress unless there are exceptional circumstances.

To apply for financial support, you need to fill out the Application Form available to download below and then submit it via email to [email protected] by 31 January 2022.